The movers and shakers in development in Scotland.

6 Jul 2006

The Power 100 report provides an opportunity to review the activity of key individuals and institutions involved in the development of the built environment in Scotland.

This year it’s good to see a number of new ambitious developers operating in both Glasgow and Edinburgh. There are some very important developments: the creation of two new URCs and in the ongoing work at Clydebank and Craigmillar is encouraging and the development of new homes on the waterfronts of Edinburgh and Glasgow – although questions remain about the quality - the scale of the projects is ambitious. And there are examples of volume house-builders engaging architects with an eye to improve design quality as well as getting planning approval. Several Scottish-based architectural practices are exporting their skills to England, Wales, Ireland and beyond.
At the same time we seem to be seeing a year-on-year increase in the number of public bodies devoted to influencing the design process. It is over a year now since Architecture and Design Scotland was established and this year the Scottish Executive is evaluating its architecture policy. If you look back over the past five years there have been a number of initiatives to promote better quality in design, not least the architecture policy.
Without the developers, we would have nothing to talk about, but are the quangoes really making a difference to the quality of the built environment? Usually when I ask that question people say changing attitudes is a ‘long game’. They may well be right, but there is a danger that the end result of all this promotion is existing bodies are drawn into a closer relationship with government, but the quality of new buildings remains the same. It seems to be ever more difficult to find clients who are prepared to trust architects to do what they do best. The Lighthouse now sits at the heart of so many built environment and creative industry initiatives. Stuart MacDonald and the board have placed the centre at the heart of the body politic, but now it needs to provide more substantial support and inspiration for design professionals.


1. Gordon Brown
Treasurer
Gordon Brown’s control over the Treasury purse strings would make him a key player in the industry in Scotland even if his constituency were not in Fife. He could become a hero among some architects if he removed the VAT on repairs to old buildings, but he remains reluctant to do so.

2. Jack McConnell
First Minister
McConnell has made little direct impact on the architectural profession over the past year. The Executive continues to back PPP, although some councils have decided to return to traditional procurement methods. McConnell’s plans to give Donald Trump special status within the Globalscot network of influential pro-Scottish businessmen has ignited concerns that the relationship could influence planning permission for an 800-acre golf course Trump is planning for Aberdeenshire\'s Menie Estate.

3. Patricia Ferguson
Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport
Patricia Ferguson is now the longest-standing minister for architecture in Scotland. She has kept a pretty low profile on the architecture front for some time, but did pitch up to speak at the RIAS convention in Perth.
4. Malcolm Chisholm
Communities Minister
Chisholm is responsible for housing in Scotland and as such is having to handle the difficult issue of housing stock transfers. Glasgow Housing Association has argued that a budget deficit is preventing it from embarking on the second stage of stock transfer, from the GHA to local bodies. However, Chisholm remains publicly committed to the policy.

5. Trevor Davies
Edinburgh City Council
Davies is tipped to take over as leader of Edinburgh City Council when Donald Anderson moves to the Parliament in 2007 – assuming that Labour runs the council. He may not be the Labour group’s first choice, but architects like him. As planning convener, Davies has consistently promoted design quality and provided the political support for the design tsar (Terry Farrell) and his deputy Riccardo Marini.

6. Stephen Purcell
Leader, Glasgow City Council
When Purcell replaced Charlie Gordon last year his first big move was to cancel the city’s café project, commenting that you could get a primary school for the cost of the café. So Purcell does seem to be a believer in the cultural regeneration ethos. He is, however, committed to the development of the East End of the city and the plans for the Commonwealth Games and the proposals to move Sportscotland to Parkhead provide an opportunity to kick-start the transformation of the area.

7. Jim MacKinnon
Chief planner, Scottish Executive
The Scottish Executive is still plugging away with the process of trying to convert the Planning Bill into law. At the end of 2004, the Executive allocated £2.25 million towards modernising the planning system. Has the money been spent?

8. Ian Gilzean
Architecture Policy Unit
The APU has its fingers in lots of pies and Gilzean wields a fair amount of influence in a number of areas. Apart from directing the Scottish Executive’s National Programme, he plays an important role in the Lighthouse, the Six Cities initiative and A+DS. Gilzean is currently organising a review of the Executive’s architecture policy and is involved in the plans to develop the ‘big blue shed’ in Leith into a central cultural institution for some of the nation’s key collections including the RCAHMS’s.

9. Raymond Young
Architecture and Design Scotland
Architecture and Design Scotland is now just over a year old. Most of its work so far has taken place behind closed doors, so it is hard to measure exactly what it is achieving. Its design review panel has made some pretty critical public remarks about a few projects, but it is hard to assess the impact of the panel. Its enabling role is in the early stages – so far it has advised two local authorities.

10. Malcolm Cooper
Chief inspector, Historic Scotland
Cooper has been in this post for over a year now and is making all of the right noises about the need for development and growth and adaptive re-use. He wants the quango to look at the big picture, not get bogged down in the detail and to try to find ways to re-use listed buildings. However, changing the entire framework through which we deal with historic buildings demands a very radical response.

11. Stuart MacDonald
Director, Lighthouse
After seven years of running the Lighthouse, Scotland’s centre of architecture and design, MacDonald is moving on to head the Gray’s School of Art in Aberdeen. Over the past year MacDonald has played a key role in a number of activities, not least rescuing the Six Cities project. He will have a say in deciding who gets to replace him.

12. Alasdair McIntosh
Scottish Executive
Is responsible for the overseeing of Scotland’s three existing URCs and the establishment of two new ones, Irvine Bay and Riverside Inverclyde. In this role he has the potential to make a serious impact on design quality in Scotland and he could help new URCs to test and develop innovative ideas.

13. Steve Inch
Director of development and regeneration, Glasgow City Council
Inch’s backing for the regeneration of Merchant City is finally paying off, and the waterfront development on the Clyde now has real potential. On the negative side, the city was forced to cancel the high-profile Glasgow Rogers/Atkins bridge project and re-tender the job.

14. Ian Spence
Chief planner, Edinburgh City Council
Spence is struggling to get a handle on the planning process at Edinburgh waterfront. Attempts to create mechanisms to aid a strategic view of the area are in the pipeline but at present the private sector continues to do its own thing and the planners are left to argue over details.

15. Mike Galloway
Chief planner, Dundee City Council
Dundee’s long-standing strategy for the waterfront remains an aspiration rather than a reality, but things are moving slowly forward. The city has just commissioned Reiach and Hall to design its new offices in a former newspaper building close to the Overgate shopping centre.

16. Maggie Bochel
Head of planning, Aberdeen City Council
Donald Murdoch left the post of director of city development in spring this year and is yet to be replaced. In the meantime Bochel, the head of planning, is directing developments in the city.

17. Iain Munro
Scottish Arts Council
The Scottish Arts Council is in the process of being reorganised following the Cultural Commission’s review, so it is unclear what money will be available for capital projects, but Munro is still providing funds for new arts buildings already in the system and is involved in the Big Lottery Living Landmarks funding process.

18. Sue Stirling Principal planner,
Scottish Executive
Stirling is head of design and built heritage in the development department, and is responsible for working with ministers on policy advice and research. At the end of last year she went to work in Bavaria to look at how they developed policy and design guidance.

19. Sebastian Tombs
Chief executive, Architecture and Design Scotland
Tombs’ former role as chief executive of the RIAS means that he is well connected. He is already working in partnership with other bodies to get A+DS moving. Plans to relocate into a new architecture centre with other professional bodies collapsed recently when Edinburgh City Council sold the site of the proposed development. A+DS has been running a number of invited forums to discuss significant design issues and it hopes to publish the findings from these events.

20. David Hastings
Director of investment and regeneration, Glasgow Housing Association
Hastings is the new head of regeneration at the GHA. Earlier this year the GHA admitted that it has a budget deficit, which is preventing the transfer of stock to local community organisations. This spring, Glasgow City Council gave the GHA several sites for use in its new build programme. Gifted sites are located across the city in areas such as the Gallowgate, the Gorbals and Pollokshaws

21. Jack Perry
Scottish Enterprise
It’s not been a good year for Scottish Enterprise. Following a significant overspend SE was bailed out by the Scottish Executive on the condition that they behaved themselves.

22. Angiolina Foster
Communities Scotland
Communities Scotland is responsible for the commissioning of most social housing in Scotland, but the body has made little impact on the discussions on design quality. While the likes of Rob Joiner (Molendinar Park), Jim Whiston (Ayrshire Housing) and Peter MacDonald (Fyne Homes) are commissioning interesting building, much of the rest of the sector is focused on procurement rather than design.

23. Robin Harper
MSP
Harper is convener of the cross-party group on architecture and the built environment for the Scottish Executive. As environmental issues become an increasingly central part of the political landscape, so could Harper.

24. Malcolm Read
Chief executive, Transport Scotland
Read is the director of Transport Scotland, the new transport agency responsible for all of Scotland’s transport and accountable directly to Scottish ministers. Improvements to Scotland’s road and rail network could have a major impact on patterns of development. One significant project will be the new Glasgow Airport Rail Link (GARL). The estimated cost of the project is £160 million.

25. Morag Bain
Director of national programme,
the Lighthouse
Bain manages the Scottish Executive’s national programme, which is administered through the Lighthouse. The programme aims to encourage public engagement with architecture policy and with good design. Bain has recently published the biennial review, Architecture in Scotland 2004-2006: Defining Place and the accompanying exhibition will be touring after its run at the Lighthouse – see page 48 for the review.

26. Sir Fred Goodwin
Chief executive, Royal Bank of Scotland
The RBS completed its new HQ building at Gogarburn last year and are in the process of building a new business school on the same site.

27. Eddie Morrison
Managing director, Bank of Scotland Corporate
Unlike its rivals at RBS, the Bank of Scotland opted to refurbish its existing historic building in the heart of the city rather than create a new one. The refurbishment, by Malcolm Fraser, will open shortly.

28. Ian Wall
Chief executive, EDI
The EDI suffered a major setback this year when ECC sold off the Haymarket site to raise money. However, Wall’s attentions are now focused on Craigmillar, one of the city’s peripheral estates that is being redeveloped using new practices on road layout and master planning, and a range of talented architects.

29. Tom Allison
Peel Holdings

30. Nathan Thompson
Managing director, property division,
Forth Ports
Thompson replaces Terry Smith, who as the managing director of Forth Ports kick-started the regeneration of Edinburgh’s waterfront. Will his replacement stick with the existing master plans and a long-standing commitment to public realm works?
31. Alan Somerville
Grosvenor
After several years of struggling to attract business to Pacific Quay, development is really taking off. The arrival of BBC staff in spring 2007 should transform the area from wasteland to creative hub. Gareth Hoskins is working on a master plan for the area.

32. David Gaffney
Quartermile group managing director, Gladedale Homes
Epsom-based house-builder Gladedale brought a 50 per cent share in Edinburgh’s Quartermile project and took responsibility for running the project in 2005. This year the Quartermile project is coming out of the ground and Gladedale’s subsidiary Betts Homes is building across Scotland. Gaffney heads the group with fellow director Remo Dipre.

33. Steve Dunlop
Director, Scotland, British Waterways Scotland
Previously director of regeneration at Newcastle City Council and director of community services at Falkirk Council, Dunlop is leading a number of ambitious projects including the regeneration of the Clyde canal below Spiers Wharf.

34. Keith Miller
Miller Group
The Miller Group is the UK’s biggest privately owned developer and construction company. In 2005 the group acquired Fairclough Homes, the commercial property market picked up and the construction industry remained buoyant thanks to government expenditure.

35. Geoff Ball
Executive chairman, Cala
Cala Group had record profits of £27.8 million in 2005 from a slightly reduced turnover of £225.1 million. The group has now completed Phase 1 at Glasgow Harbour.

36. Ken Ross
Elphinstone
Ross is one of Scotland’s most dynamic developers. There have been rumours circulating that Ross is leaving Elphinstone; in fact, the business has been undergoing a restructuring. It is also rumoured that Ross will try to sell the Charing Cross site that was to be home to the 39-storey Elphinstone tower.

37. Eleanor McAllister
Clydebank Re-built
McAllister picked up the chairman’s award at this year’s Scottish Design Awards in recognition of the good work she is doing at Clydebank. McAllister has commissioned Kennedy Fitzgerald to design the £14 million leisure centre.

38. Manish Chande and Martin Myres,
Mountgrange Capital
Chande was chief executive and co-founder of Land Securities Trillium Plc (LS Trillium), the UK’s leading property outsourcing company that owns and manages the majority of the Department for Work property portfolio and has a ground breaking property partnership with the BBC. In March 2002, Chande resigned from Trillium to form Mountgrange Capital plc with Martin Myers focusing on real estate and other investments. In September 2003, he was appointed by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport as a Commissioner of English Heritage. Mountgrange is currently developing the New Street bus station site working with Allan Murray.

39. Andy Burrell
The Burrell Company
The Burrell Company has continued to develop its fruitful partnership with other developers including the EDI Group. It is current completing the upper strand development at Granton waterfront designed by Reiach and Hall and Elder and Cannon.

40. Ali and Mike Afshar
AMA
AMA has completed its long-standing Silvermills project – now known as St Vincent Crescent – working with Reiach and Hall and Oberlanders. AMA has also completed Phase 1 of Cramond by Richard Murphy.

41. Sean Robinson
Joint managing director, Park Lane
This year Park Lane completed its block, designed by RMJM, at Glasgow Harbour. It is working with Renfrewshire Council on the regeneration of derelict land. Robinson runs the company along with Brian Clarke.

42. Michael Neilson
Dandara
Dandara is currently building Glasgow Harbour Phase 2 and is about to submit a planning application for a major development at Cheapside Street, Glasgow. Gm+ad is working with the developer on both projects.

43. John Shepherd
Whiteburn Properties
Having completed some high-profile work on the north Holyrood site, Shepherd has now bought the Cowgate fire site and is working with Allan Murray on the redevelopment.

44. Rodney Price
Clydeside Properties (Glasgow)
Price is working with RMJM architects on the Custom House Quay project. The development of the south bank of Clyde Street has provoked some hostile reaction from its neighbours but now has planning approval.

45. Stewart G Fulton
Manager, Whiteness Property Company Ltd
Fulton was assistant chief planner at the Scottish Office for 25 years, but rather than retiring he has joined together with other Highland-based shareholders to produce a plan for a new village on the site of a former oil platform construction yard just north of Inverness. The 816-acre site is being master planned by Sir Terry Farrell and could get outline planning consent in the next few months.

46. Bill Bruce
Chairman, Scotia Homes
Following on from the success of Scotia Homes, Bruce is keen to test the possibilities of more innovative design-led solutions in the rural housing market. Having formed M Bruce and Partners he is working with Cadell2 and Wiszniewski Thomson on a 20-unit housing medium-density scheme on an 8.4-hectare site above Kirknewton in West Lothian.

47. Stephen Izatt
Waterfront Edinburgh Ltd
This has not been a glorious year for Izatt and WEL, who have come under pressure for submitting a planning application for a development on Madelvic that contravened their own planning guidance. That application has now been withdrawn.

48. Jonathan Milne
Chief executive, FM Developments
An ex-farmer from Aberdeen, Milne is responsible for a number of high-profile developments, including Lancefield Quay and the Herald building conversion, which is currently on site.

49. John and Noel Smyth
Alburn Tradeston Developments
Dublin-based Alburn Tradeston Developments is working on the south bank of the Clyde with John McAslan, Anderson Bell Christie and OMS Architects. The £300 million project will create 1,000 new apartments.
50. David Yule
Estates director,
Dundee University estates department
All of the university estates departments continue to extend their building programme, and Yule in particular is commissioning good work.

51. Ken Gillespie, Morrison Galliford
Earlier this year AWG sold its construction division (Morrison Construction) to construction group Galliford Try.

52. Harry Thorburn
Operations director, Bovis Lend Lease
Bovis Lend Lease is coming close to completing the new BBC building at Pacific Quay.

53. Bob Anderson
Managing director, Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty is working on PPP bids across Scotland.

54. David Boyle
Director, Sir Robert McAlpine
Sir Robert McAlpine completed some high-profile projects in the past year, including Perth Concert Hall.

55. Ken McAlpine
Regional director, HBG
HBG’s services include construction, property development, design, PPP and facilities management.

56. Colin Sutherland
Managing director Scotland, Mansell
Mansell plays an important role in construction, particularly in the Highlands.

57. George Fraser
Deputy chairman, Tulloch
This independent group is building new homes in northern Scotland and contracting across the UK.

58. Bill Robertson
Chairman, Robertson
Based in Elgin, Robertson is a significant player in the PPP and design and build market.

59. Lindy Patterson
Dundas and Wilson
Patterson provides arbitration and contractual negotiations on many of Scotland’s key projects.

60. Charles McGregor
Partner, Simpson and Marwick
McGregor defends architects accused of professional negligence. He has just written a book for the RIAS called Risk Management: A survival guide.

61. Neil Kelly ,
Head of Construction, MacRoberts
Watch out for this man – he might be pursuing you on behalf of a client or contractor. He is also general editor of the Scottish Construction Law Review.

62. Mary Wrenn RIAS
Wrenn has made an impact since she arrived at Rutland Square. However, she recently received a bit of a knock when members recently over-rode plans to move from Rutland Square to Evolution House in the Grassmarket.

63. Graeme Hartley
RICS
The RICS will have been focusing its energy on looking at the implications of the new Planning Bill.

64. Graham U’ren
RTPIU’ren
U’ren is an expert on the new Planning Bill, so he is likely to be in high demand over the next year.

65. Jonathan Fair
BRE
The BRE continues to work in partnership with others to encourage innovation in the industry.

66. Brain Veitch
Arup
Arup continues to extend its influence on key infrastructure and architectural projects.

67. Rod Manson
Buro Happold
Manson has built on Buro Happold’s reputation for strong inter-disciplinary work. Buro Happold is working with Zaha Hadid on Glasgow’s Riverside Museum.

68. Shahram Hemmati
SKM Anthony Hunts
Hemmati is a player in the Institute of Structural Engineers. SKM continues to pick up interesting jobs.

69. Garrie Renucci
Partner, Gardiner and Theobald
Known as ‘Mr Ferrari’, Renucci has worked on retail, residential, commercial and high-value ‘one-off’ projects.

70. Sam McKenzie
Davis Langdon LLP
DL has bounced back after the Scottish Parliament project, working on PPP projects and bespoke buildings.

71. Charlie Bryden
Thomas and Adamson
T&A is the cost consultant on some of Scotland’s most significant projects, such as Edinburgh’s Quartermile.

72. Stewart Cobb
Doig and Smith
Doig and Smith was responsible for the cost management of the £350 million RBS HQ project.

73. Alistair Wylie
Managing director, CCG
In addition to his role at Campbell Construction, Wylie was chair of the CIOB Scotland for the past year.

74. John McLeish
Director, Hunter and Clark
Hunter and Clark set an excellent example to contractors through its training and apprenticeship schemes.

75. Gordon Davies
Chair, Construction Industry Council Scotland
CIC continues to develop mechanisms for the industry to improve on construction skills and quality assurance.

76. Malcolm Fraser
Deputy chair, A+DS
As deputy chair of A+DS, Fraser plays a major role in determining the activity of the new body.

77. Riccardo Marini
City design leader, Edinburgh
Marini operates outside the structures of the existing planning system, which allows him to say things that other officers could not.

78. Gerry Grams
City design leader, Glasgow
Some say Grams is too ‘hands-on’ in the planning process; others that he doesn’t have the political weight to influence councillors. At least he is keeping all GCC departments informed about future plans.

79. Gordon Murray
Gordon Murray continues to play an important role as past president of RIAS and as professor at Strathclyde.

80. Terry Farrell,
City Design Champion
With a year left as design guru Farrell is now much clearer about what he can and cannot achieve. At the recent WHS conference he said that Edinburgh needs an architecture centre and a more pro-active planning system that hands out master planning work in parcels to experienced and talented architects.

81. Brian Evans
Deputy chair, ADS
Public realm is Evans’s speciality. Gillespies, Evans’s landscape practice, is reworking the Grassmarket.

82. Janice Kirkpatrick
Chair, the Lighthouse
As chair of the Lighthouse Kirkpatrick will need to guide the centre until its new director finds its feet.

83. Gareth Hoskins
Gareth Hoskins Architects
Hoskins has picked up a number of high-profile commissions over the past year.

84. Allan Murray
Allan Murray Architects
Murray is working with Mountgrange at Caltongate, with Whiteburn on the Cowgate and on the Royal Mile with Kilmartin and HBOS.

85. Karen Anderson
Saltire Society
Anderson continues to play a significant role in the Saltire Society and at A+DS.

86. Doug Read
President, RIAS
Read courted controversy when he suggested that RIAS members should not support the RIBA-promoted anti-ARB slate in the ARB elections.

87. Miles Glendinning
ECA
Glendinning’s move from RCAHMS to ECA may mean his intellectual talents get a greater airing.

88. Peter Wilson
Manifesto and Napier
Through journalism Wilson continues to exert pressure on Scots to be more ambitious.

89. Alan Dunlop
Partner, gm+ad
He’s most journalists’ first point of call and king of the Scottish architecture cyber world.

90. Robert Adam
Robert Adam Architects
A close associate of HRH Prince of Wales, Adam is part of a powerful group promoting new urbanism.

91. Ken Shuttleworth
MAKE
MAKE is master planning part of Granton waterfront, and pitching for PPP contracts.
92. Charles Jencks
Jencks is influential through his role as a writer and his involvement in Maggie’s Centres. Kirkcaldy Maggie’s opens this autumn.

93. Richard Murphy
Murphy is working on interesting commissions in Scotland and beyond. This year he was voted Architect of the Year.

94. Fiona McLachlan
Edinburgh University
Edinburgh University and ECA are in the process of merging key aspects of their administration.

95. Brian Edwards
Edinburgh School of Art (See 94)

96. David Porter
Glasgow School of Art
GSA wants to redevelop some of the sites around the Mackintosh School. Historic Scotland wants to list them.

97. Jonathan Woolf
Scott Sutherland
Woolf has established a reputation for producing a very creative programme of visiting lectures.

98. Graeme Hutton
Dundee School of Architecture
Dundee School is developing its reputation for research.

99. Ric Russell
Nicol Russell Studio
Russell picked up an OBE this year for his services to architecture and education.

100. Brian Stewart,
Brian Stewart
You might of expected Stewart to drop off the Power 100 list when he left RMJM under a cloud, but he is back, working for himself, organising an architectural competition in Aberdeen.